the world begins with you: 2nd rap
by guyinblack
Summary: The next stage of the Angel's game begins. Neku/Shiki pairing and maybe others as the story progresses.
1. Chapter 1

AN: Yo, I'm back with a new TWBWY. I just really hope that fans of the last story will be able to recall a good amount of the horde of info from the last story. But I've also put in some little recall bits that'll hopefully give you an easier time understanding the plot and stuff.

The world begins with you: 2nd Rap  
Chapter 1: Brand new fight

Following the first stage of the Angel's game, Neku and co. found themselves with their daily lives temporarily returned to them. The noise chose to not make any movements whatsoever, so all sides were at a halt for the time being. Ryou, the silent archangel who fought alongside Neku, decided to stay in the RG. There are still many mysteries surrounding him, but everyone thought it best to leave that alone.

Shortly, however, the next stage of the Angel's game would start...

* * *

Busy streets, large roads, people walking here and there, and buildings that towered to an average 50 feet high; these things made up the lively Shibuya. Amongst the crowd, a group of teens just like everyone else lived there. Although they looked like your average teenager, what they had accomplished is nothing near average.

"And again, another round of the Angel's game. Jeez...those last 2 months didn't really feel like much..." An orange haired boy sighed with a lazy tone. Neku Sakuraba, a person who'd dedicated much to saving more than just Shibuya. During the last round, he took control of the power of Noise and used it against them.

"Yeah, I guess you're right" A cap wearing, black haired girl replied. "But then again, at least we _had_ a break, right?" Shiki Misaki, a girl who'd once been ashamed of her own self and can now stand up on her own two feet with a little more confidence. She has arguably the strongest telekinetic ability, giving her stuffed doll, Mr. Mew, the life and memories of her own cat that had passed away.

"Aww...you guys are just so negative. Brighten up a little why don't you?" A red haired girl interrupted, taking a bite out of what looked like an onion ring. Eri Sarakana, Shiki initially took the form of this girl during the distant Reaper's game, and that so called game only made their friendship stronger. She's able to manipulate ice, and is able to freeze things that are small scaled.

"You know she's right, yo!" A skullcap wearing teen added with a spoonful of confidence. "Let's just keep up the good vibe!" Daisukenojo "Beat" Bito, A natural with the skateboard, which even became his weapon once again in the last round of the Angel's game. He uses rushing winds combined with the sheer speed when gliding on his skateboard to rip enemies to shreds.

"But please don't use the angel's game as an excuse to skip studying, okay?" A young, but reliable looking girl said. Rhyme Bito, her ability can be considered as the ultimate defense. Although she can't use it to attack, there have only been occasional times when something has put so much as a dent on it.

In the midst of the conversation, a purple haired boy stayed quiet as his eyes gazed on the pages of a book. Beside him, a black colored stuffed toy that oddly looked like a pig, but yet at the same time as a cat read along with him.

"You've been reading a lot of manga these days, Ryou" Eri commented with a smile, and the boy's attention switched to her.

"I guess I have. Is...that wrong?" He replied with a confused and tone.

"N-No that's not what I meant at all. Sorry about that" The girl stated back with a few waves of her hands. Ryou, a mysterious person who hasn't even given his last name. Originally from the angel plane, he assisted Neku and co. in the last round. Upon staying in the RG, he developed a liking to manga, which apparently didn't exist in the Angel Plane. Silent and cool natured, he usually has a lot of eyes on him whenever he walks around Shibuya High school although he's always ignorant of that fact. He doesn't study there, but he finds it interesting to walk around and explore the school, and a lot more things in the RG.

"H-Hey, I already told you before you can't eat that. You'll get dirty again, Mr. Mew!" Shiki suddenly exclaimed, before Neku took a slice of pizza away from the stuffed cat.

"You better listen to her. This stuff ain't good for you"

"G-Give that back! I was saving that!" the 'cat' begged as he jumped again and again for the pizza as Neku lifted it higher each time. That was, until the doll popped small claws out of each fingerless hand and gave the boy a good scratch on the face, much to his surprise.

"What the hell?! I'll roast you, frickin' pig!"

"Just try it, porqupine!"

"Quit it, both of you!" Shiki yelled with authority. "You two just can't get along, can you?" And finally, the two stopped. Neku, however, couldn't help but notice how much Shiki had changed since the reaper's game. She always looked unsure of herself, but now, she's been getting better and better.

Suddenly, the whistling sound of a door caught the group's attention, and shortly after, three people stepped in, namely, Sanae Hanekoma, Yoshiya "Joshua" Kiryu, and Kyo Senkaku. 3 of the 12 Seraphs that rule the angel plane. Respectively, they carry the titles of Seraph of "Divine Punishment", "Judgement" and "Chance"

"I know you guys are the only ones in the cafe right now, but could you keep the noise on the down low?" Hanekoma requested as he scratched the back of his head. Seeing that everyone was now present, Joshua began.

"Good, we're all here. The other players all over Tokyo are being informed of this too, and it would be great if you could memorize everything I'm about to say. But first, we'd like to bring in one more person"

And at that, the group looked towards the backdoor to see a face that didn't really bring back many happy memories so to speak. That light blond hair and white formal clothing was something they'd completely stuck in their heads.

* * *

"What's he doin' here, yo?!" Beat pointed out with widened eyes as the group of teens stared at the man's smirking face. Jean Javier, another of the Angel Plane Seraphs, although not on the same side as Joshua and the other two. Neku himself couldn't even remember how many times this person almost got him killed. There was actually only one time that Jean had helped him, but it was mostly to benefit the Seraph.

"Bonjour, how's everyone doing this afternoon?" The so-called gentleman greeted, but in return got suspicious gazes all over.

"You can relax" The Seraph known as Kyo interrupted. "There won't be any problems, i can assure you that. Besides, he still owes us for helping him out"

"That he does" Joshua smiled, looking to continue his explanation. "Well, let me make this short and sweet. For this round of the Angel's game, the guys up there in the Angel Plane...will actually be helping us"

And from there, an awkward silence ensued. Their faces were frozen stiff, trying to comprehend what Joshua said, but finally, Eri decided to break that silence. "Whoa whoa whoa, hold up for a sec. You're telling me...the guys who started this whole game in the first place to see if people were 'worthy' to live are...helping _us_?"

"Yup" Joshua replied with a short nod.

"And...you're being serious...?"

"As serious as I'll ever be"

"...Am i the only one hearing this?" Eri asked her friends who were more less trying to mentally pinch themselves.

Joshua expected nothing less than a reaction like that, although it was rather entertaining to see their confused faces, in Joshua's eyes anyway. "You might find it hard to believe, but every single bit of it's true. You see, we've noticed that the noise are cooking up something large-scale, but we didn't notice it early enough to be able to do something about it. You remember the soul plane, right? The place that houses every single person's individual soul? Well, right now we've spotted an anomaly going on in there. It's almost as if there's something...or _someone_ trying to break in to the soul plane"

Neku repeated, "Break through the Soul Plane? But I thought you could only get there by entering a person's 'soul' directly? And to do that...the mind's gotta be vulnerable when noise breaks through it"

"Not only that..." Shiki added, "But there hasn't been any noise activity since the first Angel's game ended. So how'd that happen?"

Ryou suddenly but silently interrupted, "...It was there even before the Angel's game started...?"

"That's our theory, at least" Joshua nodded in confirmation. "Think of it like a bomb, it was planted even before the Angel's game, but they detonated it just recently. And of course, there had to be a certain place where they could plant it"

"A...person?" Rhyme half-guessed, and Joshua grinned, "Exactly. A person's mind is the only ticket into the soul plane. But the question is: just who _is_ the lucky contestant?"

And that was when everything went quiet again. None of them knew the answer to that question, no matter how hard they thought. Thankfully though, that was what Jean Javier was there for.

"I think I may have a suggestion for the said question" The Seraph started, fixing his hair with his fingers. "The Angel Plane is capable of much wider research. Saying that, we believe that this person is in hiding. His place of choice is a sealed Plane that lies close to the RG's borders"

Neku grunted, "And you want _us_ to help you get rid of him"

"Yes, that's right. Don't get me wrong; you're still fighting for the sake of people. It's just that at present, you're fighting against the greater evil, no?"

Beat grunted as well, "Tch...It still looks like you guys are pullin' our legs, yo"

"Think what you want" Jean concluded with a smile. "Oh, I almost forgot. To honor our temporary partnership, and to thank you for your assistance in holding off the noise in the last round, I'd like to offer you a gift. Neku Sakuraba, Would you be so kind as to lend me your music device?"

"Headphones" Neku twitched in annoyance to the Seraph. "They're called headphones. And why should I?"

"Just trust me. Otherwise, you may regret it later"

The orange haired teen looked towards the other three Seraphs for their take on the 'gift', but it didn't look like they had any objections. "Fine...take it"

As soon as the white clad man had received Neku's blue headphones, he smiled and took out a small pin, thereafter immediately slamming it into the headphones which created a bright light that lasted for at least 5 seconds. When the light vanished, the headphones' appearance had changed, with an odd insignia at each circle end.

"The pin I've just inserted is called "Noize Meister". This will allow you to control the noise within your body, as well as give you a few abilities of an angel. Surely, you no longer have to worry about the noise causing you to go berserk like before" After pausing for a moment, he continued. "Now, it'd be best if we could move as quickly as possible. I would rather not see things get out of hand. If the noise are successful, they could control every single mind in the RG."

Although still very suspicious of the Seraph, Neku and co. decided that it was best to go along with the ride for the time being. After all, there were far worse things right now than the angels.

"Alright, now that it's settled..." Joshua began. "Player team Shibuya, Let's get going"

* * *

AN: Okay, not much action at all in this chapter, but i'm saving a truck load of that for the next. I just wanted this to be a sort of reminisce of the last story. by the way, I'm uploading character arts again at my deviantart account. If you've forgotten, it's gibder . deviantart . com (just remove the spaces please). Well, ill see you later. Bye!


	2. Chapter 2

The World Begins With You: 2nd rap  
Chapter 2: Pianist

"Sukogame", a distortion in time and space itself also referred to as "the gate that connects the planes". The distortion itself is an unexplainable phenomenon, even for the high angels themselves that had knowledge as wide as the ocean. This space consisted of all the different planes that would take too long just to count. And beside the ever-divine angel plane lay another just outside its borders. This was known by the name "Laksis"

In that plane, a vertical rip appeared in the air, eventually tearing open large enough for a group of people to enter. This group consisted of six players, and four seraphs.

Wherever Neku shifted his eyes at, all he could see were paintings. The artwork looked real enough, but what made no sense whatsoever, was that they were floating in mid-air which was definitely not normal. As for the art, apparently majority of the group couldn't understand its abstract nature.

"Well, you don't see this everyday" Neku muttered, confused as he touched one painting to find out that it didn't even budge. It was like it was pinned to a wall.

"This is one of the many planes much smaller in size" Hanekoma started with that relaxed tone of his. "Only a few planes, like the RG or the Angel Plane size up to a large scale. This one...seems more like a single prefecture in Tokyo"

In the distance, a gigantic mansion loomed over the players and Seraphs. Just like the air around them, the building was also covered in paintings, just as suspicious and bizarre.

Eri mumbled, "I'm actually kinda curious about who built this place...but at the same time...the thought makes me a bit nervous"

"Ditto..." Shiki said with the same puzzled expression on her best friend's face.

At the front of the house, Neku reached his hand out to open a very 'artistic' looking door. But just then,

"Wait a minute, Neku" Joshua said in a quick rush, just in time to prevent an unwanted scenario. "I've been getting this weird feeling ever since we got here, and I think it's coming from this mansion"

Kyo nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I gotta stick with you on that one. And if I'm guessing right..." Suddenly, the Seraph flashed his signature rifle out of the air and quickly aimed it at the top of the mansion before pulling the trigger. the bullet sped into the specified direction just after the burst of sound, but ended up disappearing just before hitting the target. "This house has some pretty buffed up security. It's got a barrier lock that blocks out a certain kind of energy; in this case being us Seraph"

"Well that's no good at all..." Hanekoma said, scratching the back of his head with minimal worry. "I guess this person must _really _love privacy. But what's really got me thinking is how this stranger was able to get his or her hands on something like that"

"Awright...so what now, yo?" Beat asked, slightly pushing his skullcap upwards.

"Hmm...I guess we can't go with you guys then" Hanekoma said with a sigh and a shrug. "I know _too_ much about these barriers. Actually...I call em' traps because that's what they basically are. Long story short: They'll blow up when the targets, in this case being us, touch it"

Joshua added "Not just that, but with the size of this plane, it'll most likely kick the bucket along with everything else.

And after that conclusion, everyone decided it best to only make the players proceed onward. From outside, the Seraph would provide any backup they can. Upon touching the barrier, Neku's hand slid right through it and landed safely on the door's knob. In a moment, the six teens had entered the building's inner premises which looked even more abstract than outside the mansion.

"damn...this place is seriously whack, yo..." Beat muttered just as his narrowed eyes shifted from one abstract picture to another.

It was then that a sudden noise was heard. Immediately, everyone identified the loud and powerful sound as a piano, a classical piano to be exact. Somehow, the piano's elegant yet rather gloomy sound echoed throughout the whole mansion.

"What a...sad song" Shiki said as the entire group focused their attention on that one sound. It was echoing, but the origin of the sound could still be pinpointed as long as it was followed, and they did exactly that. As they walked along the grand-looking halls adorned with statues, furniture, and those abstract paintings with gold frames, that slow toned music was grew stronger.

* * *

And finally, they'd caught eye of the source. In a large hall with almost nothing taking up its space, a boy with black hair that was lined with a few silver strands sat down quietly on a chair as his hands slowly but gracefully pressed matching notes on his piano.

"I wasn't expecting any guests today..." The boy mumbled to himself as he turned to face the group. Upon closer inspection, his eyes were drifting about, and there was a cane lying right next to him. From those two clues, Neku could guess that the piano player was in fact blind. There was, however, something strange. The boy seemed to be looking for something, as if he'd felt some kind of presence the moment they walked in.

Finally, the boy's eyes slightly widened as he turned towards Shiki. "Rina? Is that you?"

"R-Rina...?" Shiki nervously answered back, surprising the boy a bit, but his eyes eventually shrunk once again, and his head swayed away from the group.

"It's not her voice...I guess you aren't her then" he softly spoke with a disappointed hush. "They said...she'd come back if I helped them"

"They? Who's this 'they' you're talking about?" Rhyme asked, sounding as polite as possible. Unfortunately, the teenage boy didn't answer, and instead went back to playing his black painted piano. In turn to this, Neku stepped forward in order to ask him again face to face, but was distracted when the boy suddenly mashed his fingers on the keys, making a loud and dreadful sound.

"Don't come any closer!" He yelled, still not facing the group, but surely all his attention was towards them. "If you do...then I'll hurt you!" At that, the boy stood up from his seat and begun playing the first thing that came into his mind. At the same time, white colored hands begun creeping up from the floor, and when they did, they quickly shot at Neku and the rest of the players.

"What the?" Neku grunted, jumping to the far right then ducking the continuous barrage. Everyone else was dodging as well except for Rhyme who would shield herself with an indestructible barrier and would sometimes shield the others if she could. Even Beat, who had more mobility thanks to his gliding board, had trouble dealing with the situation.

Meanwhile, repeatedly created ice pillars to defend herself, and would do so again when the hands managed to break through. At one point though, the hands were too numerous to block entirely, but Ryou had stepped in just in time to cut them up with his sword, setting the white limbs aflame.

"Thanks!" Eri quickly said before noticing something new about the purple haired angel. "You've got two swords now? Didn't expect that to happen, but I'm glad it did"

Still on the topic of new abilities, Neku was currently using his: a combination of noise and angel powers molded into one. His hands were glowing with a white aura, but that aura was in turn surrounded with black sparks of electricity, much like when he drove himself berserk not so long ago. Thanks to this, he could even defend with his bare hands. When a threat would approach, the white aura around his hands would become so dense that it could act like a shield. On the offensive side, he could spread the aura, creating a sort of shockwave everytime he swung. The black sparks would also take effect, filling these shockwaves with a surge of electricity that could stun and maybe even kill.

Because of this, Neku was able to move without worrying much about himself. But he was still unsure on how to handle the situation. The first thing that came into his mind was the simple knock out strategy, but something didn't feel right. That's when he heard a beeping sound coming from his cellphone. Without a moment's rest, he reached into his pocket and ticked a button on his cell, soon after taking a small earpiece that seemed to have come from the device.

"_Neku, you there?"_ It was the Seraph of Judgement, Joshua, and not a moment too soon. "_Aim for the piano. If you break that, then you won't have anymore problems"_

Hearing that, Neku confirmed and dashed straight for the instrument, defending himself with his shielded hands as he drifted his body left and right. When he was close enough, he took one last leap above the piano and used the weight of gravity to drive his fists into the black instrument, creating a white flash and a forceful push that drove the blind boy back.

Finally, the white hands that had been infinitely pouring out were now gone, much to the group's relief. When the boy had realized this, his face dropped with depression. "Why...? Why do things like this keep happening...to me? I'm not even...trying to do anything wrong. I keep losing things...even sister" And he stayed like that. Staring at the ground below him with a downcast expression. There was just something so sad about him, and Shiki easily came to realize this as she walked up to the boy.

"Please, don't be so sad. Let us help you" She warmly said, reaching her hand out to him. She still didn't know if this was the person whom the noise were using as a bridge to the Soul Plane, but it didn't matter to her. It was just that seeing him like that was just too much. Neku even forgot all about interrogating him.

"You...you're just like her" The boy uttered, feeling a little bit better than a few seconds ago.

"What's your name?" Neku asked, trying to hold back any resentment towards him for what he attempted awhile ago. The boy looked up to the two, and it looked like he was about to speak, but suddenly, The orange haired teen sensed something ominous and instantly carried Shiki off her feet before springing backwards. If it weren't for that quick thinking, they would've been crushed, just like the cracked ground where the crash had fallen on and created a cloud of dust. When it seemed to thin out, a man with purple hair and blood red eyes stood out. But the most intriguing part was...

"He almost looks like Ryou" Eri said, noticing many similarities between the two, but when she looked back to assure herself, the archangel's eyes were glued to his look alike's, and so was his to Ryou's. Once again, something felt very wrong. The stranger was taller than Ryou, and looked much older, but there was still a striking resemblance.

"Sorry" The man said with a grin, "But I can't allow you to take this kid"

* * *

And there's the first cliffhanger for this series. I only introduced a bit of Neku's and Ryou's new abilities, but I'll be getting to the others soon enough. Also, please comment on anything that interests you, be it from grammar to story-wise. It really feels rewarding to see that people are commenting on the story, even if its has some criticism. And a big thank you to long fans of this story. I hope you'll keep on reading.

Anyway, I'll be shedding some light on the things that happened here next chapter. See you!


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